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Is it at all feasible to repair a broken charger cable without a soldering iron? It's fallen apart at a very inconvenient time.
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Feb 19, 2017 17:39
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DildenAnders posted:Does anyone know if the "beats audio" used in Hp's is any good? I revived an Hp Pavillion p7-1380t and it has the "Beats Audio" and im wondering if that means it has a decent/better than usual sound card. For what its worth i never downloaded the EQ or any Beats software for it, but the audio jacks all work fine It doesn't do anything the equalizer in your audio player can't. Your headphones have a 64 ohm impedance, which is right on the edge of "eh, they might benefit from an amplifier" for use with standard laptop and phone jacks. I haven't owned a pair of those, so I can't say for sure, but the headphone thread might. In the worst case that the sound is noticeably off, you can get a really basic amplifier pretty cheaply. If I remember correctly, the Audio-Technica ATH M50X would work as a substitute.
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Mar 13, 2017 09:11
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Out of two external drives, it worked on one. It's been a while, but I think I remember not being able to copy some things until somebody here suggested I use a robocopy script, which did the job. Thanks again, random goon! E: The trick will only work on hard drives with a mechanical failure such as the click of death. Faulty connectors can be replaced, a fried circuit board is probably the end, if it has baked in encryption. Fruits of the sea fucked around with this message at 17:14 on Apr 28, 2017 |
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Apr 28, 2017 17:09
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von Braun posted:What's a good, cheap (~$10) mic? Preferably with clip-on rather than stand. Maybe it's asking too much but should not pick up background noises etc. The Zalman zm-mic1 is clip on and good. Bought it on the internet's suggestion and I've gotten compliments on the audio quality since then. Assuming this is for ventrilo/skype etc and not recording, of course.
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May 10, 2017 21:38
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It's been a while, but I'm pretty sure the difference in clock speed between the two is negligible. Unless you are doing something that is heavily dependent on multithreading, there shouldn't be much point in switching.
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Jul 19, 2017 10:07
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Desktops can handle temperatures up to around 80 C without any problems. The motherboard/gpu fan controllers will throttle fan speed at mid to low temperatures to avoid making too much noise. What you describe isn't alarming, although it is possible that the carpet could impede air flow when the computer is really being stressed.
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Oct 31, 2017 10:16
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Any recommendations for a toolkit for working on computers and laptops? A decent assortment of bits, something magnetic for catching screws and not magnetic for poking around electronics. It's for a christmas gift, so a decent brand with bits that don't strip after the first couple uses.
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Dec 5, 2017 19:08
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The significant other has about 150gb of photos and music they'd like to back up. What manufacturers/models of external HDDs/SSDs are most reliable these days? I would also consider online backup services if the price was right. It would have to be pretty good though as the backups aren't going to be accessed often and her work already has a solution for storing documents.
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Jan 30, 2021 16:50
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tuyop posted:What device are the photos and music currently on? Thanks! That's actually a pretty good price for cloud storage. The device is a 7 year old macbook so an internal drive isn't an option.
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Jan 30, 2021 23:26
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This isn't strictly hardware but its for working on laptops: my bargain bin electronics screwdriver set is stripping screws all to hell. Any specific brands I should be looking at if I want something a bit better? Could be convenient if it came with pentalobe and a variety of torx as well as the more common bits.
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Feb 27, 2021 21:54
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VelociBacon posted:The iFixIt kits are a+ quality for this. You can also get similar things off amazon if the price is a bit spendy for you. This is perfect, thanks. Not even that expensive compared to the Wera set I found 
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Feb 27, 2021 22:43
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dis astranagant posted:There are uses for them in music production. I don't know the specifics but I'm guessing its about the kinds of inputs and outputs music gear uses and maybe better mixing somehow. Yeah, sound cards are useful if you need multiple line in/line outs, although these days most audiophiles and folks doing recording use USB interfaces instead. USB DACs and the like are arguably more useful for musicians since they can be plugged into any laptop. This is totally anecdotal, but I've also never had issues with drivers for a USB DAC, while the old sound blaster cards were a constant headache. Internal sound cards are kinda archaic these days, although I'm sure there are some niche cases where they are useful. Shibawanko posted:i'm not an audiophile guy but my impression was that sound calculation was relatively "simple" and at some point our pc's got so powerful that the traditional job of a sound card could be easily relegated to an onboard chip, so what do these usb things do that can't be done by the onboard chip or just a software program that modifies the output to the jacks on the motherboard? If you really want to go full audiophile or do live mixing, then a sound card is a downgrade, ironically. Every step in the chain adds a tiny bit of latency and applying effects like amplification and converting/re-converting from analog to digital distorts the audio imperceptibly. There's whole audiophile forums dedicated to stripping down a windows installation as much as possible (the real answer is usually to just get a macbook instead)
Fruits of the sea fucked around with this message at 13:56 on Mar 14, 2021 |
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Mar 14, 2021 13:48
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Cross-Section posted:It’s funny, I’ve owned one of those external Sound Blaster sound cards for years. Every time I do a new build I try leaving it out only to eventually end up plugging it back in because to my apparently-delicate ears there is a significant difference in sound quality between that and the built-in Realtek chip (at least on headphones). Even lossy tracks sound way better. It's probably got a built-in amp. Just do whatever sounds good to your ears and don't listen too much to the audiophiles.
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Mar 14, 2021 15:47
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Dumb suggestion as well, but have you given it a good round with canned air? God knows how much dust/pet hair/etc is in a used gaming laptop.
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Apr 26, 2021 19:09
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A quick google says the XPS 8300 had Sandy Bridge processors. The integrated graphics in those are just fine for office work and 99% of web browsing. I say 99% because I wouldn't be surprised if some rando video streaming service assumes you have a beefier iGPU at this point.
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May 5, 2021 15:37
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Windows handles changing motherboard/cpu pretty gracefully these days, but definitely make a backup just in case your particular hardware/windows combo is one of the edge cases. PSU should be fine, but maybe check its warranty? Might be time to get a new one.
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May 20, 2021 13:21
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petit choux posted:Me: Hey Netgear, your customer support is a bunch of scammers that tried to make me by their software You were never talking with Netgear in the first place. Did a bit of googling - looks like searching the names of Netgear's routers and variations of phrases like "tech support" returns scam sites in a lot of cases. Netgear's forums are also filled with folks complaining about the scam. It's just offshore scammers getting their "Netgear" sites high up in google's search results. My browser refused to even open the link you posted (and I shouldn't have clicked it, that was dumb). Go ask the folks in the computer security thread what you next steps should be: https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3723583 It'll likely be some variation of re-installing windows. That said, it's unlikely they installed malware (apart from a screen-sharing app) on your computer or stole passwords etc. The scam hinges on selling "software" for several hundred dollars, not stealing CC numbers. Fruits of the sea fucked around with this message at 20:31 on May 20, 2021 |
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May 20, 2021 20:28
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petit choux posted:Yeah, thanks everybody, I am such a loving gently caress fuckl No worries, you recognized it in time and checked out! Not like the folks on Netgear's site.... Unhappy victims posted:For the call and the webrrot and firewall I was charged $330.00 That thread goes on for a while  Interesting to see the call center scammers have quite a bit of leeway on pricing. Although maybe it's just good/better/best and they are free to go off-script to explain the different tiers. E:think you're the first to recognize my username 
Fruits of the sea fucked around with this message at 21:52 on May 20, 2021 |
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May 20, 2021 21:48
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Gotta keep an eye on wattage too, I'd be wary of anything that pulls more than 50W.
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May 24, 2021 10:06
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I've definitely revived a few dead laptops back in the day by holding down the power button after removing the battery. Something to do with a residual charge on the CMOS? I still do it as an early troubleshooting step since it only takes a minute. There's usually a pin or special button combo for resetting the BIOS/restoring to factory default but the steps vary between manufacturers and models.
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May 29, 2021 12:59
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Assuming the pc is in a place where spills/pets/children can’t touch it, you can just have an open case. Obviously not a permanent solution, but it’ll work.
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Jun 1, 2021 19:45
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gradenko_2000 posted:If I didn't have cats I'd definitely just run open case. Much simpler that way One of my old uni roomies spread a gaming/multimedia pc’s innards all over a shelf in our living room. Conveniently close to the tv, miraculously didn’t get hit by beer and got some interesting looks from guests.
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Jun 1, 2021 19:52
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You can get a DAC with a built-in bluetooth reciever and just skip passing audio from cellphone through your computer entirely. This is technically less lossy because there's one less step in the chain of encoding/re-encoding although you'd probably be hard pressed to hear a difference. I spent a little extra on an Audioengine B1 which probably has the exact ports you need (RCA out and optical out). You can get much cheaper ones with simliar outputs though. The Audioengine looks nice but it doesn't always work with Apple devices for some reason. E:also if you have a hard-on for fidelity, any sound coming out from a windows pc needs to be played at 100% volume unless you do funky stuff with ASIO or the like. This is inconvenient if the computer is gonna be used for other stuff. Fruits of the sea fucked around with this message at 19:15 on Jun 2, 2021 |
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Jun 2, 2021 19:05
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Honestly even early igpus could handle 90% of video playback, you should be fine with anything relatively recent. I was playing blu-ray rips on HD 4000 igpus a decade ago and things have only gotten better since.
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Jun 12, 2021 00:34
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Spacegrass posted:Yeah I use that for my card also. I’m afraid a workstation i2400 almost definitely isn’t an i2400k and won’t support overclocking. I vaguely remember that there is a workaround of sorts for non-k cpus but it’s pain in the rear end and the gains are minimal. If you’re just looking for a fun project, I’m sure somebody here knows how.
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Jun 12, 2021 22:24
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Yeah, an Xbox controller is the standard but I see so many people using PS controllers (and to lesser extent 8bitdo) that you can choose those as well. We’ve come a long way from having to make custom profiles on Xpadder for every game, it’s great.
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Oct 5, 2021 15:35
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Pretty much. Don’t scrape the paste off, it might damage the die. A tiny amount of isopropyl alchohol and a microfiber cloth should remove it safely.
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Oct 28, 2021 21:45
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Yeah front ports often (but not always) produce worse sound. One of the reasons hi-fi gear has the price jacked up is because they are advertising ***Electro Magnetic Interference Shielding** which honestly isn't really an issue in most situations. Turns out a tiny box filled with electronic components and current is one of the few exceptions where EMI shielding really is important! So the tiny cable inside the case leading to the little jack at the front of a pc will sometimes produce noticeable distortion compared to plugging directly into the motherboard or sound card at the back of the case.
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Dec 5, 2021 21:11
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Recommendation for a decent webcam? It’ll be used for Teams and possibly OBS. Not for streaming, I have some presentations and a project defense that have been moved online, and I’d like it to be a step up from the built-in laptop cams most people are using. I have a budget of roughly 200$ although I’m not sure if that much is necessary.
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Dec 29, 2021 16:31
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Thanks a lot, video is kinda out of my wheelhouse. The Kiyo Pro and Elgato Facecam are both available in my neck of the woods. Any reason I should choose one over the other?
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Dec 29, 2021 17:58
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Before you do anything drastic, try reseating the gpu and also psu’s cables. Might be worth taking a look at event viewer as well.
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Jan 2, 2022 18:48
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The other use case I can think of is if you have a bunch of unpowered speakers you want to hook up to the PC. In that case I needed a combination DAC and amp to pass sound and power through. Although if you have a set of unpowered speakers, chances are they came with a receiver and amp that can accept optical/usb in.
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Jan 16, 2022 12:31
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Headphone thread is here: https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3563521 They are probably going to suggest just getting a modmic or whatever the current equivalent is plus a nice set of headphones FWIW that's probably a good way to go, the headset market is kinda messy. I think lockdowns, work from home and Twitch encouraged some companies to slap any old plastic poo poo on their standard headsets and mark up the price by 50 bucks.
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Jan 28, 2022 14:35
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You might be able to sell the DDR2 ram for a decent price. I'm not sure what the market is like right now, but there was a period where it was quite scarce and there are still some enthusiast/business systems that need it.
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Mar 28, 2022 15:02
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It sounds like a loose cable was the issue and maybe just enough pins were still socketed to drive windows but not games. 5 years is about when its recommended to replace a psu though, so it can't do any harm. HWinfo is good for checking the temperature and clocks of your gpu. I don't know any good ways of troubleshooting a psu without a spare beyond using a multimeter, which probably isn't going to be very helpful anyways. I think the pins of psu cables can differ between manufacturers so if your psu is modular, make sure to buy cables from the same manufacturer if you think that is the problem.
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May 4, 2022 14:12
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MarcusSA posted:Edit just looking at the pictures the PS seems like it’s pretty normal so unless they are using some funky connectors it should be fine if you wanted to replace it. Tried to find some pictures as well. Looks like it has a pretty big PSU shroud, so if you are tight on space you can just remove that. It's only purpose is to hide unsightly cables and dampen sound from the PSU fan. Bonus effect is giving the GPU a little more space to circulate air.
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Jul 2, 2022 20:01
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MarksMan posted:My 4.5 year old computer was working fine last night, and then I woke up to it completely dead and won’t start up. I replaced the PSU with a brand new one I had laying around, and used all new CPU/mobo/VGA/SATA cables, and it still won’t turn on. When I turn on the power switch for the PSU, and before I push the power button on the front of the case, this is what it does continuously: Check the manual for your motherboard. The led flashing red could mean several things depending on where it is located.
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Jul 5, 2022 18:50
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I’m just reading from a spec sheet without having tried the headphones, but it looks like they should play well with just about any source. 30 ohms is pretty standard. An amp will definitely fix the issue but maybe give your pc’s sound settings a once-over first just in case the issue lies elsewhere. Maybe loudness equalization or some other effect is turned on and messing with the volume. E: not dissing the cans. Another possibility is the audio-outs on some pc cases and motherboards just really suck although I had hoped that was a fixed problem by now Fruits of the sea fucked around with this message at 23:35 on Jul 18, 2022 |
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Jul 18, 2022 23:30
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I think Grack and Indiana deserve the credit for this one but glad to hear your problems are sorted! Someone please make a joke about putting it on the wrong hole, I'm close to a heatsroke and can't think straight enough to do it.
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Jul 21, 2022 22:11
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Windows 10 stops getting support(or at least major updates) from sometime in October 2025. So you could upgrade now just to get it out of the way. Or make a note in your calendar to do it 2 years from now.
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Jul 28, 2022 02:14
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